1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the tobacco art, and more particularly, to a device for introducing a wetted impact barrier into a smoking article.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There have been attempts to design tar and nicotine reducing elements for tobacco smoke described in the prior art and several of these elements contain means for moistening or humidifying a porous filter. Typically, a frangible module containing water or an aqueous solution is embedded in the filter and the module is compressed to release the liquid before the filter is used. The moistened filter material in the element then exhibits an improved ability to remove primary tars, nicotine, and certain other volatiles from the smoke.
For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,884,246, to Eric E. Walker, a tobacco smoke filter element is comprised of a resilient, water impervious elongated tubular casing having a porous plug of filtering material disposed in each end of said casing. Opposed, mutually spaced, disc-like walls are disposed within said casing between said plugs, one wall within said casing between said plugs and one wall abutting the inner surface of each plug. Said walls define a chamber within the central portion of said casing and have at least one port in each wall. The device further includes at least one liquid containing module disposed within said chamber and extending between said walls, and said walls have at least one passage for allowing smoke through said filter element. Means carried by said element and co-operating between said module and at least one port in each of said walls direct liquid from said module through ports into said plugs responsive to compression of the external walls of said chamber, so that said plugs may act selectively as a dry filter, or, when said casing is compressed, as a filter moistened by said liquid.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,428,049 to Leake et al., one or more of said modules are surrounded by a compressed filter material in the element. When the module is compressed, the liquid saturates the filter material, causing it to expand into the space occupied by the module. It is made as part of the cigarette, confined to the filter.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,635,226 to Horsewell et al., a liquid-containing capsule is disposed between an absorbent plug adjacent the tobacco and a non-absorbent plug, such that when the capsule is compressed the liquid is released into the absorbent plug. U.S. Pat. No. 3,596,665 to Lundegard also describes a frangible, liquid-containing module disposed between two plugs. Compression of this module releases the liquid into both plugs for enhanced filtering.
In addition, many different liquids have been encapsulated within the filter mechanism to moisten the filters. Examples thereof are water, glycerin, and aqueous solutions or emulsions containing aromatic flavouring agents. These liquids act, in the filter, primarily to cool the smoke and to facilitate condensation of volatile components therein on the filter substrate.
The above mentioned filters describe smoke filters containing collapsible or frangible capsules filled with water or other liquids. Filter elements containing liquid pose a problem of retaining the liquid during storage, and those containing capsules or other containers of a liquid present within the filter structure cause a problem when the liquid is released, as the liquid holds the filter element in a collapsed state after pressure on the filter has been released.
The aforementioned prior filters lack the desired versatility necessary for widespread acceptance.
In the above mentioned products, the liquid products were incorporated inside the filter or made as an attachment to the filter.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,003,387, 4,046,153 and 3,797,644 are directed to a disposable cigarette holder made of plastics, which has a wet cotton filter on the inside. The wetness is effected by glycerin and water. The holder is attached to the cigarette which draws smoke into and over the wet cotton filter, held together by plastics casing, into the mouth, which causes the tar and nicotine in the smoke (total particulate matter) to adhere onto the fibre wet filter. This product is thus an attachment. Most smokers object to having a foreign object, such as a holder made of plastics, in their mouth.
As a practical matter, the processes of manufacturing and packaging cigarettes and the necessity for storing cigarettes for varying periods of time have proven to be affected because of damage to filters, drying out, or impact or disfiguring of the filter with moisture before being smoked.
Another example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,319,632 to Henry Burbig, relates to a cigarette moistener device. In this device, the interior of the filter tip of a cigarette is moistened. The device is topped by a receptacle and is provided with a hollow needle extending axially thereof, the needle having a number of openings in the side thereof and the hollow needle extending into the moistener container. Where the moistener container is a squeeze bottle with a resilient side, the insertion of the filter into the receptacle and squeezing the sides of the moistener container will result in impregnating the inner part of the filter with moisture. The utilization of a hollow needle of greatly restricted diameter will meter the amount of moisture thus expressed on a single squeeze, to impregnate the interior of the cigarette filter with water.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,158,099 describes a wet impact barrier filter medium for a smoking article wherein the wet impact barrier is coated across the end of the filter substantially transverse of the smoking article. The wet impact barrier is applied in sufficient amount so as to reduce tar and nicotine produced by the products of combustion.
International Publication No. WO92/14371 corresponds to U.S. Pat. No. 5,240,015, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Pat. No. 5,158,099, and relates to a wetted impact barrier which is separate and in no way attached to or bound to cigarette filters until the wetted impact barrier is physically applied to create a wetted impact barrier at the top end surface of the cigarette filter where the smoke is drawn into the mouth. The publication also describes a kit and a method of application of said kit to a cigarette in order to reduce the tar and nicotine inhaled by the cigarette smoker.
FIGS. 1 to 4 of the present application correspond to FIGS. 2, 8, 9 and 5 respectively of International Publication No. WO 92/14371. In particular, FIG. 1 shows the free end at the top of the filter of the cigarette showing a square type recess 12 in the form of a well in the filter end face. The wetted surface designated by reference 13 represents an impact barrier formed at the top surface of the filter by application of a quantity of liquid to the recess 12. FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-shaped recess configuration 19 in the top surface 11 of the filter of a cigarette which is as yet untouched by any wet impact barrier. FIG. 3 represents a further end view showing a cigarette before a wetted impact barrier is applied to the top surface 11 of the filter. A circular recess 27 is in this case provided in the top surface 11 of the filter. FIG. 4 illustrates the impact-barrier forming kit described in International Publication WO 92/14371, said kit comprising a dispenser and instructions.
In the device disclosed in International Publication WO 92/14371, barrier-forming liquid is inserted into the filter by making a hole in the end of the filter and squeezing a prescribed number of drops into the hole. A hole which is substantial in size relative to the size of the filter is gouged out. When the recess is charged with barrier-forming liquid, this spreads out through and soaks into the filter material at and adjacent to the end surface, to define the wet impact barrier. However, this can engender problems. For example, when the fluid is put into the filter, some users may taste the fluid, which in turn has an adverse effect on the efficiency of the smoking deterrent programme. Such a feature is not very encouraging for a user who intends to quit smoking.
There is therefore a need for a more effective method for delivery of fluid to provide an impact barrier in a smoking article. The invention provides a method wherein the fluid is inserted into the side of the filter, preferably towards the base of the filter, near the tobacco, by piercing a small hole and injecting the fluid in from a cartridge or container. The barrier is thus established at a location spaced from or remote from the top or free end surface of the filter, which is received in the mouth. A diversity of further methods for establishing the barrier at a location remote from the free end face of the filter are provided by alternative embodiments of the invention.
A number of cigarette/cigar treatment devices are known in which injection type techniques are applied. International Publication No. WO 81/03413 discloses a device for use by a smoker to introduce treatment fluids into a cigar, cigarette, charge of pipe tobacco, or similar consumer unit of smoking tobacco. A dispenser for the fluid is held in an outer casing, which also supports a receiver for the tobacco. An injection needle is disposed centrally within the receiver for dispensing the treatment fluid throughout the tobacco. A series of intercommunicating passages within the unit conduct the fluid from the dispenser to the needle upon actuation of the dispenser.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,269,203 discloses a device for injecting an unpleasant odoriferous substance into cigarettes contained within a package. The arrangement includes a hollow carrying case with an upper chamber for receiving a package of cigarettes and a lower chamber which contains the odoriferous substance. Hollow needles are arranged to extend from the lower chamber into the upper chamber for penetration into the cigarettes. The arrangement provides for the injection of the unpleasant substance into a multiplicity of cigarettes by a single injection operation.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,732,872 provides an apparatus for uniformly distributing an additive solution throughout the length of a cigarette. A hinged block has a recessed cavity or cradle for holding a cigarette and is movably attached to one end of a track. A carriage provided with clamps for holding a syringe or additive reservoir is movably attached to the track in a position facing the hinged block. The syringe or reservoir has a needle and plunger. The carriage is moved forward so that syringe needle penetrates the length of the cigarette, with its tip positioned at the end of the cigarette opposite to that at which it entered. Injection of the additive solution is then effected.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,054,146 provides an arrangement for reducing the content of smoking bi-products, including nicotine and tar, and the smoke inhaled by a smoker. A perforator box is used to simultaneously perforate the paper covering the smoking end of all cigarettes in a pack. The full pack is placed in an open-sided box and a needle studded cover is pressed onto the box so that the needles perforate the cigarettes. When smoked, smoke from the perforated cigarettes contains a lower percentage of nicotine and tars. The needles serve to perforate only the side walls of the tobacco region of the cigarette. There is no perforation of the filter and neither is there is any injection of additive material.
The prior art additive or fluid injection means described do not provide for specific placement of an additive substance in a specific region of the smoking product, in particular the filter. The arrangements described are also particularly suited to the transfer of low viscosity substances and are not necessarily adapted for the convenient injection of more viscous or sticky type materials.
In regard to the specific precise placement of an additive substance, the present invention thus also meets the requirement of providing a method of inserting a barrier fluid into a filter-tip so that the fluid is dispersed at a position in the filter sufficiently distant from the end of the cigarette which is put into the mouth of the user as will minimise the risk of the user tasting the fluid. Ease of application of barrier-forming fluid and minimisation of the risk of tasting the fluid are thus provided by the invention and encourage use of the related smoking termination programme and adherence thereto by users.